Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was great, and, happily, Jedi: Survivor is even better. In its current pre-patched state, its performance is a bit of a letdown, but look beyond the irritating bugs, and you’ll find what might just be one of the finest Star Wars games of all time. No, really. Also: Spawn of Oggdo. Nuff’ said.
Stranded: Alien Dawn is an enormously varied survival sim and base builder, that has been remarkably well-adapted for consoles and stuffed to the gills with content, features, and options. This is as welcoming or as hardcore a survival experience as you want it to be.
A California scream, Dead Island 2 finally crosses the finish line after nine years as an accomplished and deliriously fun first-person zombie mash 'em up. The stomach-churning gore might not be for everyone, but fans of body horror and viscera will be well-served here.
Wonderfully, uniquely esoteric, Ghostwire: Tokyo is like little else. A cracking first-person paranormal yarn ripe with fresh ideas, oddly endearing characters, and an immersive world to explore, this is Tango Gameworks' most assured and accomplished game to date. Get wired in.
Made in a warzone, Sherlock Holmes The Awakened is a solid remake that covers all of the bases you'd normally expect from Frogwares' Sherlock series, delivering an absorbing mystery and a procession of nicely executed puzzles. It's a perfect stop-gap before Chapter Two comes along.
Despite competition from PGA Tour 2K23, EA Sports PGA Tour manages to set itself apart with polished presentation, tight mechanics, and impressive visuals. While a shortage of customisation options is disappointing, there's no arguing with the overall quality that EA's return to video game golf has to offer.
An improvement over WWE 2K22, which was itself a superb wrestling game, WWE 2K23 has one of the best 2K Showcases to date, and fluid gameplay that's easy to pick up and play, but tricky to master. The champ is here.
Three-and-a-bit years on, The Outer Worlds still holds up as a fine example of RPG excellence, with choices that actually carry proper weight. On Xbox Series X|S, the Spacer’s Choice Edition looks great, although you can’t help but be left with a nagging feeling that it could be slightly more polished.
A remake full of changes and adjustments that stays true to the spirit of the original, Resident Evil 4 can't be seen as anything but a complete success. Some may malign what's missing, but the areas that have been added or expanded more than make up for what's been taken out. This is brilliant stuff.
A slow-paced, languid horror remaster, Project Zero: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse is not only a chance for western players to finally play a Japan-only entry in the series, but it's also a haunted house experience that delivers on creepiness.
A perfectly decent chunk of linear extra-terrestrial shooting, with a sprinkling of mild Soulslike elements, nice puzzles, and plenty of exploration, Scars Above is a double-A budget game that's worth a look.
Controversy aside, Atomic Heart is a robust first-person affair, albeit one that revels in glorified Soviet iconography and Wolfenstein-esque alternate history weirdness. The difference is, there's no ambiguity in shooting Nazis – here, however, you can’t help but have a sense of unease while playing.
While having to hunt monsters driven from their habitat by human intervention and a lack of food engenders a sense of Shadow of the Colossus-level guilt, there's no avoiding the sheer depth and consistent enjoyment that Wild Hearts has to offer.
If you've been wondering what all the fuss surrounding the Yakuza series' foray into Japanese history is about, then wonder no more. Like a Dragon: Ishin! is a superlative localisation of a compelling samurai story, that is every bit as good as the series' other best outings. Brilliant.
On paper, Wanted: Dead has everything you could possibly want from an action game, but it’s mired in poor execution, ropey presentation, and more than a few unusual design choices. Wanted? We’re not so sure.
If you're expecting a Martian mission like Total Recall, then recalibrate those expectations. Deliver Us Mars is a rather slow affair with little variation in its puzzles and a languidly delivered narrative. In spite of its issues, however, this is a journey just about worth sticking with.
It’s good to see you again, Mr. Bond. After more than 25 years, GoldenEye 007 has still got the same magic that made it such a seismic event upon its release in 1997. This Xbox version might be missing online multiplayer and cheat codes, but don’t let that put you off. It’s still utterly wonderful.
Tango Gameworks’ rhythm-based actioner is not only one of the most enjoyable games in years, it’s also one of the most stunningly beautiful, with fantastic music and beat-matching combat to boot. Hi-Fi Rush is, indeed, as its name suggests, a rush.
As far as vertical shmups hauled out of the arcades and ported to home consoles are concerned, Raiden IV x MIKADO remix is just about as good as it gets. Nonetheless, this is really one for the die-hard fans of bullet hell.
A deep and colossal monster melee, Monster Hunter Rise is both enormously fun and uniquely rewarding. Snap it up.